Lake Ashby, into which
the ditch along Pell Road ultimately flows, was surveyed on two
different dates in an attempt to determine if Pomacea maculata
Perry, 1810 from the population in the Pell Road ditch had been
successful in colonizing the lake. The lake is quite large and
encompasses about 1030 surface acres. During the first visit by Joel
Wooster (New Smyrna Beach) on 2/1/2006 no evidence of Pomacea
maculata was found. However, during a more thorough
investigation by Joel Wooster and Bill Frank on 2/17/2006, the partial
shells of three Pomacea maculata were found in
widely separated areas within Lake Ashby Park on the northeast corner of
the lake. The park is virtually the only area of the lake accessible
without water transport - and also the most distant from the southern
end of the lake where Pomacea maculata could have
entered the lake from the Pell Road ditch. While the presence of the
partial shells would normally be considered strong evidence of the
species presence, the possibility that local fisherman may have
transported the specimens there to use as catfish bait also cannot be
discounted.

Follow-up Information: On 5/9/2008 the
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission had a crew working on
a vegetation project at Lake Ashby and they observed numerous Pomacea
maculata egg clutches "in most areas of the lake except the boat
ramp and boardwalk areas" thus confirming the presence of the snails in
the lake. A Florida Department of Environmental Protection biologist,
who was accompanying the crew, indicated that the snails are also in
Lake Ashby Canal leading to the St. Johns River but this information has
not been verified.

On 3/4/2009 a survey of the wooded shoreline near the fishing
pier/walkway (pictured below, left) yielded a number of intact empty
shells of both Pomacea maculata and P. paludosa
(see image).
The presence of the Pomacea maculata shells in this area
suggests that the species has now colonized the northern end of the
lake.